[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 20 (Tuesday, January 31, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6244-6245]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-01873]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Notice of Request for Information (RFI) Regarding Inflation
Reduction Act Home Efficiency and Electrification Rebate Programs
AGENCY: Office of State and Community Energy Programs, Department of
Energy (DOE).
ACTION: Request for information (RFI).
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of State and
Community Energy Programs (SCEP) invites public input for its Request
for Information (RFI) number DE-FOA-DE-FOA-0002981 regarding the
development of best practices for the Home Energy Rebate programs in
accordance with the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Responses to this
RFI will be used for planning purposes to develop one or multiple
opportunities to assist states, territories, Indian Tribes, as well as
potentially other entities, in designing, managing, and improving the
Home Energy Rebate programs.
DATES: Responses to the RFI must be received no later than 8 p.m. EDT
on March 3, 2023.
ADDRESSES: Responses to this RFI may be submitted in two ways. DOE
prefers responses that are submitted via this online form: https://forms.office.com/g/iuwKCbKpJK. The form includes response boxes for all
59 questions included in this RFI. Respondents may answer as many or as
few questions as they wish. Using this online form will allow DOE to
sort and compare responses by question, which will help agency staff to
more easily analyze the responses to inform program guidance.
Responses may also be submitted by email to
[email protected]. Responses must be provided as a Microsoft
Word (.docx) attachment to the email, with no more than 10 pages in
length, 12-point font, 1-inch margins. It is recommended that
attachments with file sizes exceeding 25MB be compressed (i.e., zipped)
to ensure message delivery. If submitting responses via email, please
identify the specific question number and topic area to which your
response is directed, if applicable. Respondents may answer as many or
as few questions as they wish. The RFI is located at https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/. SCEP does not intend to respond to individual
submissions or publish a compendium of responses.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions may be addressed to Michael
Forrester, email at [email protected] or (202) 586-1215.
Further instruction can be found in the RFI document posted on https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On August 16, 2022, President Biden signed
the Inflation Reduction Act.\1\ The energy and climate provisions of
this bill include tax credits for clean energy technologies, $8.8
billion in residential energy efficiency rebates, $200 million for
energy efficiency contractor training, and billions more for clean
energy research and development, community investment, energy justice,
and permitting processes. IRA section 50121, Home Energy Performance-
Based, Whole House Rebates (referred to as Home Efficiency Rebates) \2\
and section 50122, High-Efficiency Electric Home Rebate Program
(referred to as Home Electrification Rebates) \3\ established the Home
Energy Rebates programs.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Inflation Reduction Act, Public Law 117-169 (August 16,
2022).
\2\ Codified at 42 U.S.C. 18795.
\3\ Codified at 42 U.S.C. 18795a.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
SCEP intends to use principles of equity and justice to guide IRA
implementation of these programs, consistent with the Biden
Administration's commitments to ensure that overburdened, underserved,
and underrepresented individuals and communities have access to federal
resources. The IRA implementation processes should advance equity for
all, including people of color and others who have been historically
underserved, marginalized, and adversely affected by persistent poverty
and inequality. IRA implementation efforts for the Home Energy Rebates
programs support the goal that 40 percent of the overall benefits of
certain federal investments flow to disadvantaged communities (the
Justice40 Initiative).\4\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ Executive Order 14008, ``Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home
and Abroad,'' 86 FR 7619 (Jan. 27, 2021).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The implementation of the Home Energy Rebates programs aims to help
American households save money on energy bills, upgrade to clean energy
equipment and improve energy efficiency, and reduce indoor and outdoor
air pollution. DOE estimates that the historic home energy efficiency
and electrification consumer rebates authorized will save households up
to $1 billion annually. More information about the Home Energy Rebate
programs can be found on the program's website.\5\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\5\ Accessible at https://stage.energy.gov/scep/home-energy-rebate-program.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
SCEP is working to distribute these funds so that households across
the country can soon access these benefits. Congress has structured
these rebate programs to be developed and implemented by State Energy
Offices and Indian Tribes, with DOE providing guidance, support, and
oversight. SCEP is seeking to build upon the agency's knowledge of home
energy efficiency and electrification technologies, tools, and programs
through this RFI.
The following table describes the purpose, funding levels, and
eligible entities for the Home Efficiency Rebates and Home
Electrification Rebates programs.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Program name Authorizing statute Funds available Eligible recipient(s) Purpose
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Home Efficiency Rebates............. IRA Sec. 50121........ $4.3 billion for the period States................ State energy office ``receiving a
of fiscal years through grant pursuant to this section shall
September 30, 2031. provide rebates to homeowners and
aggregators for whole-house energy
saving retrofits[.]''
[[Page 6245]]
Home Electrification Rebates........ IRA Sec. 50122........ $4.275 billion to States States and Indian The Secretary shall award grants to
and $225 million to Indian Tribes. ``State energy offices and Indian
Tribes through September Tribes to establish a high-
30, 2031. efficiency electric home rebate
program under which rebates shall be
provided to eligible entities for
qualified electrification
projects.''
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Purpose
The purpose of this RFI is to solicit input from States, Indian
Tribes, local governments, energy contractors, labor organizations,
manufacturers of energy efficient home equipment and materials,
community-based organizations, environmental and housing justice
organizations, disadvantaged communities, and other stakeholders to
inform the DOE's program guidance for the home efficiency and
electrification rebate programs. This is solely a request for
information and not a Funding Opportunity Announcement. SCEP is not
accepting applications through the release of this RFI. SCEP will
consider responses to this RFI as it develops program guidance,
expected to be issued as an Administrative and Legal Requirements
Document in 2023. Specifically, SCEP is interested in public input on
questions across the following categories:
Accessible and Equitable Program Design
Tribal Implementation of the Home Electrification Rebates
Designing Programs for Maximum Impact
Integrating Existing Incentives and Programs
Opt-In Tools, Resources, Technical Assistance, and Partnerships
Income Verification
Estimating and Measuring Energy Savings
Eligible Technologies for Rebates
Data Access and Sharing
Compliance and Quality Assurance
Job Creation and Quality
Buy American and Supply Chain Considerations
Open Response
Confidential Business Information: According to 10 CFR 1004.11, any
person submitting information that he or she believes to be
confidential and exempt by law from public disclosure should submit via
email, postal mail, or hand delivery two well-marked copies: one copy
of the document marked ``confidential'' including all the information
believed to be confidential, and one copy of the document marked ``non-
confidential'' with the information believed to be confidential
deleted. Submit these documents via email or on a CD, if feasible. DOE
will make its own determination about the confidential status of the
information and treat it according to its determination.
Signing Authority
This document of the Department of Energy was signed on January 17,
2023, by Dr. Henry McKoy, Director of the Office of State and Community
Energy Programs, pursuant to delegated authority from the Secretary of
Energy. That document with the original signature and date is
maintained by DOE. For administrative purposes only, and in compliance
with requirements of the Office of the Federal Register, the
undersigned DOE Federal Register Liaison Officer has been authorized to
sign and submit the document in electronic format for publication, as
an official document of the Department of Energy. This administrative
process in no way alters the legal effect of this document upon
publication in the Federal Register.
Signed in Washington, DC, on January 25, 2023.
Treena V. Garrett,
Federal Register Liaison Officer, U.S. Department of Energy.
[FR Doc. 2023-01873 Filed 1-30-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P